She wanted to live in the library as a child, now she is in charge

MT. PLEASANT - Kayleigh Septer, the new director for the Mt. Pleasant Public Library, loved going to the library so much as a child, she remembers asking if she could live there.

'I remember at one point I told my mom I wanted to live at the library and was very angry when I was told I could not,” she recalls.

While new to the role, Septer is a familiar face, not only to the community but to the library itself. Septer has worked at the library for the past 10 years and most recently served as the reference librarian.

'The coolest part of working at the library is being able to connect with the public - give book references, help people use library resources they may not have access to at home,” she said.

Brian Carter, a member of the library board, said Septer was 'the obvious choice” when the position opened up.

'She's been very, very good. She knows the community. She's worked here 10 years and really knows the library,” Carter said.

The new director, who graduated from Iowa Wesleyan with a degree in history and a minor in English, started as a children's night clerk. She later returned to school and received a master's in library and information science, which allowed her to step in as the reference librarian and has enabled her to step into the role as director.

'I never really thought that this would ever happen … I'm really excited to take on this new role,” she said.

'It'll definitely push me out of my comfort zone, but I believe I am capable of doing this job to the best of my ability,” she added.

Septer noted she has a wonderful staff who will stand behind and support her through this new journey.

Looking forward, Septer said she's still finding her footing but is excited to continue the work of former directors and 'keeping the library alive in the community.”

In addition to Septer, the public library recently hired a new children's librarian as well. Amy Willson, who joined the staff in late August, worked as a teacher for 25 years, the last 10 as a teacher librarian.

Willson, who moved into the area five years ago, said the new position was 'a good fit” for her skills and interests.

'When I got my teacher librarian degree 10 years ago, I realized the library part is what I enjoyed the most … Here I get to use my teaching skills and my librarian skills,” she said.

Willson said her favorite part of serving as the children's librarian is working with kids and 'helping them find a love of reading.”

'It's great when you helped them find that right book that gets them hooked on reading,” she said.

Although the pandemic has put a halt to some library activities, Willson said she is forging ahead with curating more exhibits and activities for the recently opened Children's Discovery Museum.

Since she started, Willson has added a human body room, a grocery shopping center and a veterinarian room in addition to the dinosaurs, Legos and robotics room the library already had.

Willson said she is looking forward to continuing to expand the museum so more families and children from the community can take advantage of the space.

'There's a lot more things to be interactive with. I want to keep expanding the museum and hopefully expanding hours so more families can enjoy it,” she said.